Moving stairway handrail supporting device



Nov. 24, 1953 5, MARGLES 2,660,286

MOVING STAIRWAY HANDRAIL SUPPORTING DEVICE I Filed Sept. 2, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l SAMUEL 6U 5777VE Nil/Q6455 INVENTOR BY 6M ATTORNEY Nov- 1953 s. G. MARGLES MOVING STAIRWAY HANDRAIL SUPPORTING DEVICE Filed Sept. 2, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fkw ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 24, 1953 were MOVING STAIRWAY HANDRAIL SUPPORT- ING DEVICE Samuel Gustave Margles, Brooklyn, N. Y., as-

signor to Otis Elevator Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application September 2, 1950, Serial No. 182,954

2 Claims.

The invention relates to handrails of moving stairways and especially to the driving of the handrails.

Moving stairways are provided with moving handrails for the convenience of persons using the stairways. Two handrail are provided, one on each side of the stairs, and are arranged to be driven in synchronism with the steps. It has been the practice for a great many years to provide a traction drive for the handrails. In these arrangements, the handrail passes around newel wheels at the ends of the stairway. There are certain advantages in providing a single wrap traction drive for each handrail, that is one in which the traction is provided solely at the driving newel wheel at one end of the stairway. In the preferred construction, on the upper run the handrails slide on guides between the newel wheels. On the return run, at the upper end of the stairway the handrails pass around tensioning devices with a reverse bend and extend from the tensioning devices down the incline to the lower end of the stairway. The invention is directed to tensioning devices for the handrail return runs.

The object of the invention is to provide a reverse bend tensioning device for handrails which minimizes friction drag on the handrail on the return run and obviates damage to the handrail.

In carrying out the invention according to the preferred arrangement, a plurality of closely spaced rollers are arranged on each side of the stairway in an arc of large radius extending from adjacent the upper newel wheel to well down the incline of the stairway. These rollers are rotatably mounted on an arcuate support adjustably mounted on the stairway balustrade framework. The back of the handrail runs over these rollers with a reverse bend, being tangent to the newel wheel and to the arc of the rollers adjacent the newel wheel at a point depending on the adjusted position of the arcuate support. Also the handrail is tangent to the arc of the rollers at the handrail incline, the point of incline tangency also depending upon the position of the arcuate support. The arcuate support is adjusted to take up on the return run handrail incline so as to provide the desired traction for the driving of the handrail.

Features and advantages of the invention will be seen from the above statements and from the following description and appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic representation in side elevation of a movin stairway, illustrating the preferred embodiment of the invention. T

Figure 2 is a view in longitudinal section of the upper end of the stairway of Figure 1, parts being shown diagrammatically.

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 3--3 of Figure 2; and.

Figure 4 is a view taken along line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Referring to Figure l, the moving stairway extends between the lower landing l and an upper landing II. In the arrangement illustrated, the stairway comprises an endless series of steps I2 driven at the upper end of the stairway by means of sprocket wheels through running gear chains. Thes sprocket wheels are mounted on and driven by the main drive shaft is of the stairway. This drive shaft in turn is driven by an electric motor I l through reduction gearing l5, this gearing including a driven gear I 6 on shaft I3, an idler gear [3, a driving gear 29 in turn driven by the motor through a worm and gear reduction (not shown).

The stairway has two endless moving handrails, one on each side thereof. These handrails are driven from motor [4 to operate in synchronism with the steps. Thehandrail 25 for but one side of the stairway is illustrated. The driving newel wheel 26 for the handrail is mounted on'a stub shaft 21. The newel wheel is driven by means of a sprocket 3t bolted to the wheel, in turn driven through sprocket chain 3! driven by sprocket wheel 32 of the main drive shaft. The sprocket chain 3| passes over a pair of deflector sprockets 33, adjustably mounted to provide th desired tension. The handrail on the other side of the stairway is driven in a similar manner from shaft [3.

The handrails are C-shaped in cross section (see Figure 3) and are of rubber reinforced with canvas. The rim of each of the driving newel wheels has a rubber tire 34 vulcanized thereto to provide the desired traction. Each handrail has .a steel tape 35 moulded therein of a width co-ext-ensive with the fiat portion of the hand-j rail. The ends of the tape are secured together at the same time that the ends of the handrails are joined to form a continuous loop. This con struction obviates any undesirable stretching of a the handrail.

On the upper or exposed run, each handrail is guided between the newel wheels on a guide 36. The handrails fit over the guides which are shaped to slidably support the handrails and to guide them laterally. On the return run, the

3 back of each handrail, that is the fiat portion of the handrail outer surface, passes over a reverse bend tensioning device 31 adjustably secured to the stairway framework.

Referring to Figures 2, 3 and 4, each tensioning device comprises a plurality of rollers 49 mounted on an arcuate support M in the. form of a. se ment of a large circle. These rollers are of plastic material, such as a phenolic resin compound, and are provided with ball bearings 42 supported on pins 43 mounted on support 41. The arcuate support in cross section is in the form of an.

angle and is provided with a pair of mounting angles 44, secured to the vertical leg thereof'as by welding. Bolts 45 in the ends of angles M clamp the arcuate support to a plate 46 secured to the balustrade framework 4'! adjacent the driving newel wheel 26. The plate is provided with slots 48 through which the bolts extend and arranged at an angle to the stairway incline to permit the position of the tensioning device to" be readily adjusted. Troughs 49 are welded to plate 45 in back of the slots to prevent turning of the bolt heads. A screw 55 extends through a bracket on the arcuate support and a bracket 52 on plate. 45 and is provided with nuts 53 at each end for cooperating with the. brackets foreffecting the adjustment. The slots 45 are terminated at an upper point such that with the arcuate support at the top of the slots, the handrailis just tangent to the second-or third supporting rollers from the ends. In lower positions of the support thehandrail is tangent at rollers farther in from the ends, the particular points of tangency being dependent on the position of thearcuate support. Thus the handrailis led on and :off the tensioning device without being bent.

'To insure the handrail running'on the rollers, a short arcuate guide 54 is provided for the handrail above the arcuate support. The handrail fits over the guide which is shaped to guide the handrail laterally should it tend'to deviate sidewise. This guide is supported by brackets 55 mounted on the arcuate support.

With the singlewrap traction drive handrail, the. handrails may be formed as continuous loops in thefactory and slid into place before the side panels of the balustrading-are installed; In forming the loops, the endsof the handrail are'vulcaniced-together; In this process the ends of the steel tape insert are alsovulcanized tog-ether as by providing overlapping ends coated with rubber cement. In installing a handrail, .it is pulled sidew-iseover its guides 36 ontheupper run, led over the newel wheels at the ends of the stairway and then placed over: the tensioning device 3?, The guide-5d is then sprung intoplaceand mounted on the arcuate support. When these operations have been completed, thetensioning device is adjusted to provide the desired tension in the handrail.

The eliminationof sharp bending of thehandrail :asit passes onto andoff thetensioning device minimizesthepossibili-ty of. damage to the handrail. and its steel. insert. In addition to the eliminationof the sharp bends and the adjusting of the tension inthe handrail, the running of the handrail on its return run over the rollers and the readily come off its guides.

elimination of supporting guides for the return run of the handrail reduces handrail friction to a minimum. Also, the tension device has the further advantage that its large radius minimizes the possibility of deformation of the handrail and thus widening it to such extent as to enable it to A. seven foot radius hasbeen found satisfactory in. practice but this may vary.

As many changes could be made in the above construction andmany apparently widely different/embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense,

What is claimed is:

1. A- reverse bend tensioning device forthe return run of a moving stairway handrail, said handrail being in the. form of .a continuous loop passing around :a newelwheelat each end of the stairway and having a single wrap traction drive, said tensioning device comprising; :a plurality of adjoining rollers 'over which the back of the handrail runs, said rollers being arranged in a long are of large radius extending in a reverse bend from the upper newel wheel to well down the inclineof the-stairway; an'arcuate support for said rollers adjustably mounted on the stairway balustrade framework to enable the tension in the handrail to be adjusted; and a guide mounted on said. arcuate support for laterally guiding said handrail on said rollers.

2. A tensioning device for the return run of a moving, stairway handrail, said handrail being in the form ofa continuous loop passing around a newel wheel at each end of the stairway and having a single wrap traction drive, the upper newel wheel being driven, said tensioning device comprising; a plurality of closely spaced plastic rollers-over which the back of the handrail runs, said rollers being provided with ball bearings and being arranged in a long are of large radius having its center below so as to provide a reverse bend for the handrail, said are extending from the. upper newel wheel to well down the incline of the stairway; an arcuate support for said rollers; a plate mounted on the stairway balustrade framework upon which said support is adjustably'mounted so asto enable the tension in thehandrail to be adjusted; and a short arcuate guide mounted on said arcuate support for laterally guiding said handrail on said rollers.

SAMUEL GUSTAVE MARGLES.

References Cited in the. file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 781,614 McCabe Jan. 31, 1905 1,167,602 Strang Jan. 11, 1916 1,363,533 Roe Dec. 28, 1920 2,211,427 Margles Aug. 13, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 305,922 Germany June 1, 1918 

